Starcraft 2: Crap....you will buy it anways.

[Atmos Duality]

After participating in the Beta, comparing the old with the new, and checking out the new battle.net 2.0, a thought came to me.

This new Starcraft isn't made for me. It is made for the professionals, the ones who perfected build orders, who do APM in the 70 and 80s, who have timed out builds for the race they play.

Bnet 2.0....the sole reason Starcraft 2 was not released a year ago. The sole reason we haven't seen an actual game from Blizzard in 7 years.
And the sole reason I have hesitations about purchasing it, not because of the quality of the game (which, judging from the beta, is fantastic), but because of the possible new limitations Blizzard plans to roll out with their new system.

This is where I put on the typical tin-foil hat, and speculate like an absolute pessimist, so feel free to skip this next bit if you're tired of hearing this sort of stuff.

So far, the only two conditions I've seen Blizzard go official with imply that they know how to control their market. In the last year, in one of their Q&A sessions about Starcraft 2 Blizzard stated that "piracy was never a major problem".
So that's exactly why they eliminated LANs and force the player to buy into their new network; a network that cannot possibly be that cheap to construct, let alone maintain.
Due to promises made back in 2007, Blizzard is unable to follow the pressuring, greedy urges of their sister company's infamous president (Bobby Kotick, if you did not infer it already), to institute a mandatory access fee for Battlenet 2.0.

The sole reason I say these wild things (purely speculation, before someone cronks me over the head about it) is because from a strictly business standpoint, Battlenet 2.0 is a goldmine nigh on par with WoW, but with an incredible long term profit margin. Instead of 12-15 dollars a month, say they charge 5 dollars for maintenance.

But wait! Blizzard is fully expected to migrate all of their previous and future titles to Bnet 2.0. It would be stupid not to.
Virtual DRM is what follows; you can play with your friends, but only as long as you are all willing to pay each month.

Consider that if everyone ropes their friends into the system, it's a multiplication effect for their monthly rates. I imagine the backlash piracy will be significant (though like most criminal activity, not measurable), so Blizzard is attempting to preempt it years in advance DESPITE already going on the record about piracy not hampering their earning significantly.

However, the only thing that's stopping them now is their previous claims that Bnet 2.0 will not include a charge or monthly fee. There are laws about advertising practices that lead credence to this, but those promises were made years ago when they first announced it.

Before anyone says anything amounting to "Have a little faith in Blizzard. They never let us down before!" to me, I can only say in advance:
"You are an utter fool."

This is no longer the gaming hobby. It's the gaming industry. You are worth nothing more to these companies than the money you pay, and the hype that you can spread by word of mouth (the best possible advertising).

Cold business decisions backed up by the spin of marketing. Blizzard can afford to produce quality titles, and that's that. They are no different from any other game producer/publisher.

Here's to hoping Starcraft 2 isn't the swan-song of a great gaming legend. Bottoms up!
*takes a shot*

Oh..almost forgot...
*takes off tin-foil hat*

 

[Sjakie]

No LAN support = Me not buying SC2

Since that is the main fun for me when i play RTS games (which is almost nada these days anyway)
I dont see any fun/value for me in it, so i stopped caring about SC2 coming out.
normal online play is often flawed in some way: in CNC it was people who disconnected instead of surrendered for example, im sure you catch my drift.

 

[UnusualStranger]

Post o paranoia

You are saying what I said, but taking it a hell of a lot farther. You know that Blizzard is a company, and that their primary objective as a company is to make money. No ifs, ands, or buts. They need money.

Now, if they do decide to start charging (Which is something I doubt due to your aforementioned laws and regulations standpoint), there would be a major fallout. This move would largely bank on their WoW players having a change of heart and wanting to play Starcraft 2, which is extremely unlikely, since there would be nothing to really gain from it.

However, I feel that they actually ARE very concerned with Piracy. They claim to not be to keep pirates off their back. Its a lot like saying Beetlejuice 3 times, claiming that you worry about pirates just attracts more of em. And more pirates on your game is never a good thing.

However, you do exactly what I think people should do. Just because a company has usually done a good job doesn't mean their next job will be a good one. You can always screw it up.
*Joins in the drink*

Hope for the future though.

CNC

So, someone else actually didn't do that too? Huh. Fancy that.

But yeah, I actually still sometimes go to my buddies houses, and sometimes do a quick game of starcraft. No need for an internet connection, no connection problems. Nothing.

Main fun for me in RTS games is also playing with friends, but I like a good single player that makes some sense too, and provides a unique challenge.

 

[Dark Prophet]

Well I have spent some time with the beta, 5-6 hours against the AI to get the overview as what unit does what and about 20 hours against actual human players and I have to say it's true what the thread creator said above, it is for the pros and the truly obsessed. Don't really remeber how many matches I lost but I won only 9 And only few of those because I really was better mostly I won because I was against fenomenal idiots. But when I lost it was like was playing against brutal AI, some matches lasted only like 5 mins or so.
And I'm even not that new to the SC I have played the first one like a lot (300+ hours)
So I won't be buying SC II
One other thing why I am not buying the game is the episodic release, so if you want to play the story you have to buy all 3 and all 3 will have full prices(correct me if I'm wrong on that)so it's like buying one game with the price of 3 it's worse then what MW2 did.

 

[Atmos Duality]

One other thing why I am not buying the game is the episodic release, so if you want to play the story you have to buy all 3 and all 3 will have full prices(correct me if I'm wrong on that)so it's like buying one game with the price of 3 it's worse then what MW2 did.

Aye. They will all have retail price, regardless of what people claim (remember kids, to retail, a game is worth what retail will charge, not necessarily what they paid for per copy!)

The only probable purchase might be the first game for me; that way, I get access to the map editor, and the real fun can begin.

 

[scripp]

I did the beta ... and I love SC 1 .... but SC 2 is just the same game ... I really thought they would do something different..

but is just new graphics and they made the protoss less effective for power players..

the zerg pretty much rule if you stand off and wait for an attack and see what your protoss or terran are up to ...

what a mess.. I am a hard core starcraft fan but won't buy this game.

just the old game with better graphics .. ( not much better by the way) and totally messed up the balance..

I'm out on this one.

 

[omega 616]

If it means I don't get a loss before I even build a barracks by those scary Koreans I am kind of all for the server thingy.

In other news, I haven't really been looking for every scrap of info on SC2 ... I basically only know what you have just told me.

I don't think popularity can ruin something, only the people who make the game an ruin it. Maybe you mean fans have made it into the second coming of christ so it might leave a sense of disappointment by not living up to it.

 

[slipknot4]

I personally think SC2 is absolutely fantastic, and I pretty much just cheated my way through the first game's singleplayer So I am far from a RTS pro.

I never liked Starcraft to be honest. The first game was cool and all but, it was balanced for and by the pros witch made protoss a monster in noob games. Guess it's my fault for playing Terran : /
But, i don't get that same feeling from SC II, it's boring and everything for the first 15 games but after getting into a party with a friend and getting the groove on I'd say that it's one of the, if not the most enjoyable RTS ever made.

//SlashCamp, Team hot streak, 2 hours ago.

 

[Kurokami]

After participating in the Beta, comparing the old with the new, and checking out the new battle.net 2.0, a thought came to me.

This new Starcraft isn't made for me. It is made for the professionals, the ones who perfected build orders, who do APM in the 70 and 80s, who have timed out builds for the race they play.

Not that I hate it. I think it is a fine game and will probably do better than the original just because its Starcraft.

And therein lies the problem.
Starcraft 2 and with it battlenet 2.0 could both be absolutely terrible, and a bunch of people would still go after it. Which brings me to the darkest thought in all of this.

They probably don't care if it sucks. They don't care if you can't have LAN, don't care if you are not a professional and can't really do online, and don't care that they have effectively isolated each nation to its own server, meaning it is next to impossible to play with friends in other countries.

They will get paid for the game by a bunch of people, and that is all that they want.

The discussion here is simple. Do you think that possibly the popularity of Starcraft has possibly already ruined the sequals? And what do you think of the lack of LAN, the compartmentalization of servers, and hell, while we are at it, the game in general?

I'm curious to see what you people think. Perhaps I'm just being a pessimist about the whole deal, but I do wonder what other people think of this.

I too was in the beta, and I must admit that even though I was completely out matched I still quite enjoyed it. The units are all very varried, the game when playing someone of your own skill, or even somebody higher can have quite a few comebacks and balance breakers and sometimes its just facinating to see how the pro's go and waste you. I've had quite a few times when I'd go lay waste to an enemy only to have them completely counter me and f*** me up (since they knew exacly what units I had massed).

My only complaint is how the professionals treat others sometimes in competitive play, decimating others is fine, but if you're gonna ***** about it then clearly YOU joined the wrong game.

As an a huge fan of Blizzard's RTS' and their excellent map editors I have to say that even though I likely won't play competitively, the thought of what can be done is really quite amazing and exciting for me. Buying the game will be more than just one game if you consider the maps that will be made.

On your point that they didn't even need to try, I think that's why I have huge respect for blizzard, I fully agree with you that many would buy even if the game was a rip off... and yet if you've been following it, I doubt you can deny that they've been EXTREMELY faithful to their fanbase.[/b} (Bolded to urge you to read incase the previous lines bored you)

(Also, fuck you Square Enix)

(The above comment is just a bit of fallout from playing FF13 and the last few games, don't take it too harshly)

 

[nofear220]

This new Starcraft isn't made for me. It is made for the professionals, the ones who perfected build orders, who do APM in the 70 and 80s, who have timed out builds for the race they play.

Professionals are in the high 200 APM... but theyre Korean lol
I wont be getting it anyway cause I hate RTS games, if I wanted strategy Id play Risk.

 

[Not G. Ivingname]

Snip

If anybody cares, Blizzard will care. Not because they spent 10 years on this one game to be the follow up to what is widely regarded as the best RTS game in history, but they spent 100 million dollars on the game. They have a LOT to lose if they screw this up, not to mention they need to convince the players to buy the other 2/3rds of the game. The main reason why Starcraft was so unbelievably successful is because of its balance. That is why it still pops up on the top ten sales charts for PC games, that is why it has become a SPORT in Korea with SEVERAL channels dedicated to it. If they want Starcraft 2 to be that same mega hit and not Blizzard's finacal down fall, it will have to be extremely balanced and very well done. If it wasn't, it still could be a hit, but it wouldn't have the huge long term success

Your right, not having LAN sucks and the servers dedicated to very specific regions sucks. However, if you need help playing around, I can give you some very interesting tactics and strategies that don't need preciece timing to pull off and can really surprise opponets.

 

[Kurokami]

People are geeking out about SC2 and D2, and they have every right to, but none of them can argue that these aren't 3D facelifts for games they've already played.

That's something I could agree with. Most, in fact all, of the in game engines are the same thing as before but with a shinier coat to it. And wasn't the original Starcraft supposed to be based on Warcraft 2's engine and then rehashed to what it is now? But for the most part, I'm just anxious to see how the singleplayer plot will go.

Games have better graphics, different units, differences in gameplay.

How do you make a sequal, may I ask?

Diablo 3 seems to be aimed to work very differently in a way, the way you slash now can even hit multiple people which can add an extra bonus to wielding different weapons. I'm definitely excited, to be honest though, I'd be excited even if it was Diablo 2 released with modern day graphics.

 

[IamQ]

I'm not nearly an elite player. Actually, Starcraft 2 was my first introduction to the Starcraft universe, and I love the game for all it's worth.

 

[teqrevisited]

I think that the majority will probably buy and enjoy it for what it is, but will be slightly annoyed at best about the lack of / presence of certain elements. If someone disagrees so strongly with something within the game then they should avoid buying it, much like many have avoided the ill-conceived C&C4.

 

[TerranReaper]

I personally think SC2 is absolutely fantastic, and I pretty much just cheated my way through the first game's singleplayer So I am far from a RTS pro.

I never liked Starcraft to be honest. The first game was cool and all but, it was balanced for and by the pros witch made protoss a monster in noob games. Guess it's my fault for playing Terran : /
But, i don't get that same feeling from SC II, it's boring and everything for the first 15 games but after getting into a party with a friend and getting the groove on I'd say that it's one of the, if not the most enjoyable RTS ever made.

//SlashCamp, Team hot streak, 2 hours ago.

Protoss is ridiciously easy to pick up as beginner, but even in the beginner leagues, they're beatable once you understand the strengths and weaknesses of the faction you're playing as and how the Protoss works.

 

[DrEmo]

After participating in the Beta, comparing the old with the new, and checking out the new battle.net 2.0, a thought came to me.

This new Starcraft isn't made for me. It is made for the professionals, the ones who perfected build orders, who do APM in the 70 and 80s, who have timed out builds for the race they play.

Not that I hate it. I think it is a fine game and will probably do better than the original just because its Starcraft.

And therein lies the problem.
Starcraft 2 and with it battlenet 2.0 could both be absolutely terrible, and a bunch of people would still go after it. Which brings me to the darkest thought in all of this.

They probably don't care if it sucks. They don't care if you can't have LAN, don't care if you are not a professional and can't really do online, and don't care that they have effectively isolated each nation to its own server, meaning it is next to impossible to play with friends in other countries.

They will get paid for the game by a bunch of people, and that is all that they want.

The discussion here is simple. Do you think that possibly the popularity of Starcraft has possibly already ruined the sequals? And what do you think of the lack of LAN, the compartmentalization of servers, and hell, while we are at it, the game in general?

I'm curious to see what you people think. Perhaps I'm just being a pessimist about the whole deal, but I do wonder what other people think of this.

StarCraft II is a good game. I've never played StarCraft one but I got the SCII beta anyways and played it. I loved it. It was very fun and very challenging. The thing is, StarCraft has been out for over a decade, people have perfected their methods and strategies. Blizzard knows this and embraced it when making SCII. The game is not easy for newcomers but what'd you expect? It's a PC RTS, the sequel to a highly technical/beloved decade old game. I like SCII even if I get my butt handed to me on a silver platter on every single match.

You should worry about Bungie. Halo sucks, they don't care they just like the money they're making. Halo: Reach will ship in Fall and the gameplay hasn't been updated. Instead of playing like a slow-paced and less fun Unreal Tournament rip off it plays like an slow-paced and less fun Halo rip off. They took community feedback to make the guns more powerful, to add the ability to sprint, they've had other great shooters to take inspiration from such as the Battlefield series, Call of Duty and even Team Fortress, yet they took all of those gameplay suggestions, innovations and progressions and wiped themselves with it and released a crappIER Halo game.
The saddest part:
It will still sell millions on its first day and people will love it and defend it with their lives.

 

[Nouw]

To be honest, I'm getting Starcraft 2 because it has better graphics than SC1. And the Galaxy Editor. Just putting it out there

 

[Zanaxal]

Starcraft 1 learned me how to micro and have good buildorders, which i'm forever grateful for.

When buying Starcraft 2 the main reason for wanting it over any other RTS's is that it will be the best balanced strategy game since Starcraft 1.

The people who play strategy games for ranking and for stats gain know all to well that most new releases have balancing of a unicycle. (CNC games, what a joke. Company of Heroes KANGAROOOOOOS / Wehr VET's)

Like take f.example the death of Age of Mythology, the expansion pack titans. (Unbalanced super team added)

So it's a brilliant investment for Multiplayer gaming.

Blizzard also seem to have the leading AI for their rts games, most other rts AI's have moneycheats and over poplimit cheats when deciding difficulty.

Blizzard also have a way superior support for map making and use of custom maps.

These are the biggest factors for choosing this RTS over any other, hope that helps.

 

[SturmDolch]

I didn't play the first game. I mean, I played it at my friends house a long time ago and didn't care for it. I don't like the idea that matches are only 40 minutes and it's all about speed. I don't really care for the setting. I don't like Blizzard games too much; they're the McDonalds of video game developers. I really didn't like Warcraft III. I hate that this game will be $60.

That being said, I'll buy it on release because all my friends will buy it on release. And then they'll be talking about it and playing it 24/7. I don't like being left out.